FFXIV dev Yoshi-P calls out "some MMOs" in Asmongold interview Dexerto

Asmongold and Rich Campbell sat down with Final Fantasy XIV developer Yoshi-P to discuss the ever-popular MMO, and why talking to fans is so important.

FFXIV has been the most profitable game in the Final Fantasy series, boasting over 24 million players. The game’s next expansion, Endwalker releases on November 23, 2021, and looks set to boost the game’s popularity even further.

Asmongold invited the game’s producer, Yoshi-P, to an interview with him and fellow streamer Rich Campbell. The interview most focused on why FFXIV has been successful and why communicating with fans is key.

Asmongold often discusses FFXIV on his streams.

Engaging with FFXIV players

Yoshi explained that the open channels of communication were a result of the devs showing their commitment to players after FF14’s initial launch flopped.

Yoshi elaborated on this saying, “FFXIV had a horrible launch, the players were looking forward to a new Final Fantasy MMO and were very angry. We had to apologize and correct our ways. So, I went to corporate and told them I wanted to have open communication with the community. The first step was to make sure we were talking to our players about what we wanted to rectify.”

“Do these developers even play their own games?”

Asmongold felt that both developers and players recognizing their mutual love for the game is a great step towards building open channels of communication between them, and that Final Fantasy XIV is a good example of this.

Yoshi agreed, and in regard to some developers not engaging with their community, said he and his team sometimes wonder “Do these developers even play their own games? But with us, a lot of the developers on FFXIV are Warriors of Light themselves.”

Rich asked what other games Yoshi plays and draws inspiration from. Yoshi said he couldn’t possibly list every single one, but Ultima Online, Diablo, and World of Warcraft are among those he admires as a player, designer, and engineer. He also said other Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games are inspirations.

Yoshi said he’s looking forward to playing New World to experience the creativity of other developers. He also wants to see what inspiration it gives them to “to spice up our creativity on Final Fantasy XIV.” Asmon added that it’s great to see ideas among different MMOs cross-pollinate and be shared.

Surprisingly, Yoshi also sees similarities between Final Fantasy and Call of Duty, “When I played Call of Duty Modern Warfare, I went in and thought, this reminds me of Final Fantasy. You’re a small party, but you save the world. Just like in Final Fantasy, but it’s a first-person shooter.”

Asmon concluded that “playing FF14 has been everything but a burden” and that he enjoys playing the game but that it lacks “some sort of retention mechanic keeping me engaged.”

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